Cylindrical body rams with mounting accessories



May 12,1970 v T. THOMAS TAL 3,511,136

CYLINDRICAL BODY RAMS WITH MOUNTING ACCESSORIES Filed April 8, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Z -52 I .l Ze, /-3O 3i 1&7, 1 MI |N [W 4 1 Ro wm H 'T-T' :r Ill 54 Ill Eaeeaern. A ou mw.

ATTORNEY May 12, 1970 v, THOMAS ETAL 3,511,136

CYLINDRICAL BODY RAMS WITH MOUNTING ACCESSORIES Filed April 8, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 mvEm-oes V/ rns 7. 77-10mm I 8 Ease-27- H. LOUD/9H.-

ATTO2NEY$ United States Patent US. Cl. 92-161 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Disclosed herein is a hydraulic ram assembly including a hydraulic ram which is adapted to be mounted in various mounting brackets and connected to various feeder members with the hydraulic ram having unobstructed fluid flow passages that terminate on a common wall of the ram, and adapted to be actuated by spring return or with air or liquid working fluid for double action, or both.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In machining operations such as milling, drilling, etc. the shape of the work piece and the available space in the work area on the machine make it diflicult to use standard work holding equipment to hold all of the various shaped work pieces that are machined. Special fixtures limited to specific uses designed for many applications.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Our device comprises general purpose components which are adaptable for use on, or building into, an enormous range of devices in which high pressure is needed in limited space. More specifically, the hydraulic ram assembly according to this invention comprises a cylindrical ram which can be mounted in a variety of mounting brack ts and connected to various feeder members. By the proper selection of the various mounting brackets and feeder members available, the hydraulic ram can be used to form a variety of assemblies for holding work pieces in a minimum space, and by merely interchanging feeder members or the mounting brackets or both the hydraulic ram assemblies can be quickly and easily changed to different positions.

Other objects and advantages will become readily apparent from the following detailed description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view partly in section of the hydraulic ram assembly supported by a 45 degree mounting bracket.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view in elevation of the hydraulic ram with a particular feeder member secured to the ram.

FIG. 3 is a view taken on line 33 of FIG. 2 showing the 90 degree openings in the feeder member.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the hydraulic ram and feeder member disconnected.

FIG. 5 is an elevation view partly in section showing a hydraulic ram with an alternate feeder member.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the alternate feeder member.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a hold down plate.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a 45 degree angle mounting bracket.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a vertical mounting bracket.

FIG. 10 is a view of a horizontal mounting bracket.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Although the disclosure hereof is detailed and exact to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, the physical embodiments herein disclosed merely exemplify the invention which may be embodied in other spe- 3,511,136 Patented May 12, 1970 cific structure. The scope of the invention is defined in the claims appended hereto.

Referring to the drawings, particularly FIGS. 1 through 4, a hydraulic ram assembly according to the present invention includes a hydraulic ram 10 supported by means of a fixture or mounting bracket 12 which is attached to a work surface 14. Hydraulic fluid is supplied to the hydraulic ram 10 by means of a feeder member 16 secured to the end wall 18 of the ram 10 and connected to a pressure source (not shown) by pressure lines 20 and 22. By selecting the proper mounting bracket 12 and feeder member 16, a hydraulic ram assembly can be formed which can be used either individually or in combination with other hydraulic ram assemblies to meet practically any work holding problem in a particular machining operation.

More particularly, the hydraulic ram 10 forms the basic unit of the assembly and includes a cylindrical housing or body 24 having a solid ram 26 with a piston head 28 mounted for reciprocal motion axially within a central bore 30 which terminates at end wall 18 in the housing 24. The solid ram 26 is retained in the central bore 30 by a threaded cap 32 having a central opening 34 through which the ram 26 extends.

Reciprocal motion of the ram 26 in the central bore 30 of the housing 24 is achieved by admitting hydraulic fluid to the bore 30 in the space 36 on the high pressure side of the piston head 28 through a passage 38 in the end wall 18 and by admitting return fluid, such as air or oil supplied under pressure, to the bore 30 in the space 40 or the low pressure side of the piston head 28 through a passage 42 in the end wall 18. A compression spring 44 may be provided in the bore 30 between the end cap 32 and the piston head 28 to provide return motion or to aid in retracting the ram 26 into the bore 30 when air or oil return is used. Either gas or liquid may be chosen as the working fluid at either end of bore 30, regardless of the choice for the other end.

The flow of hydraulic fluid or return fluid through passages 38 and 42 into the bore 30 is so arranged that the motion of the piston head 28 will not block the passages 38 and 42. In this regard and referring to FIG. 2, the cylindrical housing or body 24 is shown having a threaded section 46 at the open end of the bore 30 with a tapered shoulder or chamfer 48 provided between the threaded section 46 and the bore 30. The return passage 42 extends through end wall 18 and enters the bore 30 at the tapered shoulder 48. Air or oil supplied through the passage 42 will enter the bore 30 in an annular chamber 50 formed between the cap 32 and the threaded section 48 and will enter the space 40 in the bore 30 on the low pressure side of the piston head 28 through an annular gap 52 between the tapered shoulder 48 and the end of cap 32. The inlet passage 38 also extends through end wall 18 and enters the bore 30 in the space 36 between the piston head 28 and end wall 18 provided by the button 54 On the piston head 28.

Various means may be used to seal the piston head 28 in the bore 30. In the disclosed embodiment, an O-ring 56 is provided in a peripheral groove 58 in the piston head 28 and has an outer diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the central bore 30 to sealingly engage the walls of the bore. Extrusion of the O-ring 56 through the low pressure side of the piston head 28 is prevented by means of a back up ring 68 provided in the groove 58 which is made of Teflon (tetrafluoroethylene).

The central bore 30 of the housing 24 on the low pressure side of the piston head .28 is sealed by means of an O-ring 62 provided between the cap 32 and the housing 24 and an O-ring seal 64 provided in a groove 66 in the opening 34 of the cap 32 to engage the ram 26. To prevent the admission of foreign material into the 3 bore on the return motion of the ram 22, a V-shaped rod wiper 68 is provided in a recess in the outer end of opening 34 in the cap 32 to wipe the surface of the ram as it is retracted into the bore 30 in the housing 24.

Various means can be used to connect the passages 38 and 42 to the fluid pressure lines 20 and 22 depending on the space and type of mounting required for the hydraulic ram 10. If there is sufiicient clearance at the end of the ram, the feeder member 16 may be in the form of a feeder cap or disc 72 secured to the end wall 18 of the housing 24 by a cap screw 74 which is screwed into a threaded aperture 76 in the end wall of housing 24. This type of feeder cap has an arcuate outer surface having a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the housing 24 with one side cut away to form a fiat face or surface 78. A first set of flow openings or passages 80 and 82 are provided in the feeder cap and are axially aligned with the passages 38 and 42, respectively. The passages 38 and 42 are accurately aligned with openings 80 and 82 by a locating dowel 84 provided in the face 86 of feeder cap 72 which is inserted into an aperture 88 in the end wall 18 of the housing 24.

If there is insuflicient clearance at the end of the feeder cap 16 for direct connection of the pressure lines 20 and 22 to the flow openings 82 and 80, respectively, connection can be made through a second set of openings 90 and 92 in the flat face or surface 78 of the feeder cap 72 which intersects the first set of openings 80 and 82 at a 90 degree angle. These openings are threaded and are normally closed by plugs 96 which are removed when the pressure lines 20 and 22 are connected to the apertures 90 and 92. The plugs 96 are then screwed into the threaded ends of openings 80 and 82.

The connection of the passages 38 and 42 in the housing 24 with the openings 80 and 82 in the feeder cap 72 are sealed by means of O-ring seals 100 and 102 when the feeder cap 72 is secured to the end wall 18. These O-ring seals are positioned in shallow recesses 104 and 106 at the ends of passages 38 and 42, respectively, and have a diameter slightly larger than the depth of the recesses 104 and 106. When the end wall 18 of the housing 24 is mounted on any flat surface, such as that provided on the feeder cap, the O-rings 100 and 102 will be squeezed between the faces 86 of the feeder cap 72 and the end wall 18. Since both of the passages 38 and 42 terminate on a common surface of end wall 18, only the single step required to mount the feeder cap (or other structure having appropriate passages) on the end wall is required to automatically seal both passages 38 and 42 with the corresponding openings 90 and 92.

If the hydraulic ram 10 is to be mounted in a flush relation to a working surface 108 as seen in FIG. 5, a feeder cap in the form of a flat plate 10 is secured to the end wall 18 of the housing 24 by screwing cap screw 74 into threaded aperture 76. Fluid fiow passages or openings 112 and 114 are provided in the plate which enter on side wall 116 of the plate 110 and are turned through 90 degrees terminating on the fiat face 118 of the plate 110. These passages are spaced to correspond with the passages 38 and 42 in the housing 24 and a locating dowel 120 on plate 110 is inserted in aperture 88 in end wall 18 to assure positive alignment of the openings 112 and 114 with passages 38 and 42. The O-rings 100 and 102 in the recesses 104 and 106 at the end of passages 38 and 42 will seal the connection of the openings 112 and 114 with the passages 38 and 42 as described above.

The hydraulic ram may be secured to the work surface by a pair of mounting bolts 122 which pass through opening 124 in the plate 110. A hold down plate 126 may be used to aid in holding the hydraulic ram in the vertical position. The hold down plate 126 has an opening 128 having a diameter equal to the diameter of the housing with a lip 130 to engage a snap ring 148 provided in a groove 134 in the outer periphery of the housing 24. Holes 136 are provided in the hold down plate for the mounting bolts 122.

Various means can be used to support the hydraulic ram 10 on the work surface of the machine depending on the angular position required for the hydraulic ram. In FIGS. 1 and 8 a 45 degree mounting bracket is shown having a base plate 138 with a support arm or collar 140 at a 45 degree angle to the base plate and a number of mounting holes 141 along each edge of the plate. The hydraulic ram 10 is positioned in an aperture 146 in the support arm 140 and a snap ring 148 is placed in one of the peripheral grooves 134 provided on the outer surface of the housing 24. The diameter of aperture 146 is substantially equal to the diameter of the housing. The faces 143 of the collar 140 are spaced a distance apart equal to the distance between the grooves 134. The spacing of grooves 134 is kept uniform with regard to a range of ram lengths for interchangeability with various mounting brackets having corresponding collars. Only one snap ring 148 is required to hold the hydraulic ram in the bracket since the ram force will generally only be present on one side of the bracket. If the hydraulic ram is double acting then a snap ring will be required on both sides of the support arm 140. The distance between the two surfaces 143 of the support arm or collar 140 is equal to the distance between two of the peripheral grooves 134 on the housing 24.

Vertical mounting of the hydraulic ram can be achieved by various means such as a bracket 150 as shown in FIG. 9 which includes a support block or base 152 having a number of mounting holes 154 and a collar 155 with an aperture 156 for the hydraulic ram positoned in the plane of the base 152. Horizontal mounting of the hydraulic ram 10 can also be achieved by various means such as a bracket 160 as shown in FIG. 10 which includes a base 162 on each side of a collar 165 having an aperture 166 for the hydraulic ram without mounting holes 164 in each of the bases 162.

What is claimed is:

1. A hydraulic ram comprising a cylindrical housing having a first bore, a second bore, a chamfered section connecting one end of said first bore to said second bore and an end wall in the other end of said first bore, a ram mounted for axial movement in said housing and having a piston head positioned in said first bore, an end cap in said second bore and having a central opening through which said ram extends, said end cap being spaced from said chamfered section, a first passage in said housing originating in said end wall and terminating in said chamfere'd section to provide a fluid flow path through the space between said end cap and said chamfered section to one side of said piston head, and a second passage in said end wall terminating in said first bore to provide a fluid flow path through said housing to the other side of said piston head.

2. A hydraulic ram according to claim 1 including a feeder member secured to said end wall and having a first set of openings aligned with said passages, a second set of openings intersecting said first set of openings and a pair of plugs to close one or the other of said sets of openings.

3. A hydraulic ram according to claim 2 including a mounting bracket for supporting said ram, said bracket having a base and a collar disposed at a predetermined angle to said base, said collar having an aperture for receiving said housing and faces spaced a predetermined distance apart, said housing having a number of peripheral grooves spaced a distance equal to the distance between the faces of said collar and a snap ring positioned in each of said grooves.

4. A hydraulic ram according to claim 1 including a return spring positioned between said end cap and said piston head and a button on said piston head positioned to engage said end wall to provide a space between said piston head and end wall for hydraulic fluid.

5. A hydraulic ram according to claim 2 including seal means for said passages located between said feeder member and said end wall, said seal means includes a recess in said end wall at the end of each passage and an O-ring in each recess.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Haeseler 92-163 XR 5 Pickop 92161 Hulshizer 92-164 XR Gartin 92164 XR Beal 92146 XR McCormick 92-163 XR Bertsch et a1 92--163 XR Burger 277-237 XR 6 Towler 92-164 Geck 92-161XR Bose et a1 92161 Shattuck 92163 X'R Nunnemacher 92-161 Gies et a1. 92-161 U.S. Cl. X.R. 

